Guest Posting: How It Works and What It Can Do for You
Quick Navigation
- What Is a Guest Post Service?
- How Do You Write a Guest Post?
- Where Do You Send Guest Posts?
- How Do I Sell a Guest Post?
- Is It Safe To Consider a Guest Post Service?
- Does Guest Posting Still Work?
- How Does DA Affect My Post Purchases?
- How Much Should I Charge For a Guest Post?
- 12 Best Guest Posting Services of 2021
Guest posting, also called guest blogging, is writing content for another person’s or company’s blog or website. Businesses may solicit these posts as onetime services or on an infrequent or contract basis. Along with other search engine optimization (SEO) and content marketing strategies, companies and individuals can use this technique to increase brand awareness, help build a niche community, and generate more organic traffic.
Image via Unsplash by @corinnekutz
What Is a Guest Post Service?
Guest posting service is a legitimate SEO strategy, and some refer to it as a “white hat” strategy. The term comes from the way people in the tech world refer to hackers. White hat hackers are the good guys who follow the rules to look for potential flaws in a program or system and fix them. This is in contrast to black hat hackers, who also look for flaws, but do so as criminals or by engaging in other illegal practices.
Because guest posting is a white hat strategy, it’s a reputable tactic for earning high quality links that navigate back to your site. The content and backlinks allow you to reach a larger audience and get brand exposure, which is good for your site’s SEO.
How Do You Write a Guest Post?
If you’re a freelancer, writing a guest post for someone else’s site or blog isn’t much different from creating content for your own channels. You often follow a similar process and format. There are some tricks you can use that may make your posts more appealing to other sites or encourage them to ask you for more content in the future. They include:
1. Focus on the Audience
Understand the blog or site’s target audience so you can write content that addresses them. Do your research by looking at comments, social media shares, and other channels where the host site interacts with its audience. It helps to note demographics like age and gender and see if they have any specific interests. If you’re working closely with the host site owner, you can talk to them about their target audience to get a better idea of how to shape your content.
2. Align With the Brand
Each brand has a distinct style and voice. While you have a unique writing style all your own, you’ll want to adapt that style to fit the brand of the host site. Research past articles and content the host site has published and study the tone, message, and angle of what they share. If you understand the branding, you may write a better piece that needs fewer revisions before publication.
3. Check the Style Guide
Some site owners might give you specific instructions, or a style guide, to follow when writing your posts. This information might tell you how many headings to use, how long the post should be, and other relevant information. If you’re given these kinds of instructions, follow them and ask questions if necessary. If you don’t receive a style guide, look at how the site structures its other posts. Consider things like the post, sentence, and paragraph lengths as well as the number of sections and the use of images.
4. Focus on the Action
Actionable content appeals to readers because it informs them and encourages them to go out and do something. When picking a topic, think about a project or skill people could use or apply in the real world. You could also consider information that would make their lives easier. These are the things that provide value to readers and encourage them to return for more content.
5. Step Out of the Spotlight
Though you are the guest poster, the content in the article isn’t about you, your business, or your accomplishments. The post likely isn’t a sales pitch, so don’t treat it like one. The goal is to establish credibility through the writing itself rather than through a description of the business. Content marketing works because it’s advertising that doesn’t feel like advertising: instead, it feels like a reliable source sharing valuable information with the public.
6. Create Your Byline
Your byline is the place where you can talk about yourself and your accomplishments. Host sites often ask writers to provide short bios for themselves to supplement the article and introduce you to their audience. Focus on telling people who you are, what makes you credible, and where they can find more of your content.
7. Include Internal Links
When blogging or writing for another site, consider including internal links to their other content to boost SEO. This helps with the site’s backlinks and organic search.
8. Deliver the Finished Package
Deliver everything required in the style guide or as stated by the site host. This goes beyond just spell-checking and sending your written content. Send your bio, any images, links, and all supplementary materials. Ensure you have the right file types, quality, and size of images, and that all your links work properly. Not only is it professional, but it saves time. Performing professionally may lead to requests for you to do more guest posts on the same site.
Where Do You Send Guest Posts?
There are two primary ways to decide where and how to send your guest posts. The first is to contact other websites where you want to share your content. This is like cold calling or emailing in sales, especially if you’re unsure if the host site is looking for or would be receptive to guest content.
The other option is to use a link building and placement site. These companies often have relationships with bloggers in different niches and can send your guest posts out to them for a fee. CopyPress’ content syndication services can also help you place your content and build your backlink profiles.
How Do I Sell a Guest Post?
After you’ve found a place or a way to sell your posts, you then need to take the steps to make that conversion. If you use a link-building placement site, signing up or having a consultation with the company is the first step. If you choose to contact bloggers or host sites on your own, you may have to sell them on why you’re a good fit and they should use your content. There are different ways to do this that might depend on the site, your niche, and your industry reputation. Some tips that can help include:
1. Build Relationships
Even before you decide to start guest posting, it’s a good idea to build relationships with bloggers and other professionals in your industry. This can broaden your network and make it easier to find content opportunities. Creating connections over time may also help you pitch content more naturally since you can utilize knowledge from your network to determine who can benefit from your specific knowledge.
2. Read the Rules
If you choose to contribute to a site that actively uses guest posts, look for or ask for their guidelines before making contact. This can tell you exactly what they expect from guest posters. It can also help you craft a pitch tailored to their needs.
3. Do Your Research
Your pitch can help show bloggers or site hosts that your posts are a fit for their audience. Research the site to learn about their target audience, the type of content they already post, and how it aligns with your skills and talents. This can also help you identify some of your strengths to share with them.
4. Pick the Right Time
There are a few peak times that you can pitch a guest post that can increase your chances of making a sale. They include:
- After a blog or site mentions your company on social media
- After a blog or site mentions your products or services in their posts
- When a blog or site is actively advertising for guest posters
- Right after a blog or site publishes another guest post
These opportunities show the host site is receptive to the idea of guest blogging. This can be especially helpful if you’re making a cold contact because you have a reference point that you can mention in your introduction.
5. Sell Yourself
Create a pitch based on your research that highlights your attributes for the host site. Think about their previous guest bloggers or past content that’s done well. You might tell them how you can meet those expectations or how you can improve them to get better metrics. Your pitch should explain why it’s worthwhile to work with you. Depending on how well you know the contact and your current situation, you can present your pitch in person, over the phone, or through email.
6. Make It Personal
Keep your interactions as personal as possible, even if you don’t know the site contact. Call people by name and reference research you’ve done about the company or individual and their content. Consider following some of the same professional rules you’d use when writing a cover letter or filling out a job application when sending your pitch or meeting with a potential collaborator: the more you can demonstrate you knowledge and enthusiasm about the opportunity, the more receptive the recipient may be to your ideas.
Is It Safe To Consider a Guest Post Service?
When we ask “Is it safe?” to use guest posting, we mean “Do Google and other search engines penalize your site for this type of content?” Because guest posting is a white hat strategy, it is safe to use guest posting to benefit a business website. This legitimate trick falls within Google’s terms of service. A company site won’t see penalties in rankings or status for using it. In fact, frequent, customized, or quality guest posts can actually help company sites rank better because of backlinks.
Does Guest Posting Still Work?
When done in a personalized and strategic manner, yes, guest posting still works as an SEO tactic. Understanding the target audience, the content they’re looking for, and what they find valuable are some of the best ways to get the most out of your posts. There are also several metrics that can affect your success as a freelancer, which may impact who you choose to write for. Some metrics to consider include:
- Domain authority (DA): Predicts how likely a domain is to appear in search engine results pages (SERPs) in relation to competitors
- Domain rating (DR): Rates the backlink profile on a website to measure the quality and quantity of links that go back to a specific domain
- Organic traffic: Visitors that reach a site through SERPs and other unpaid forms of advertising and content promotion
These three metrics for a host site can all factor into how well your guest posting works. The higher and better these metrics are, the more quickly you may see traffic and returns.
How Does DA Affect My Post Purchases?
A high DA from the host site often means a higher search engine ranking and traffic. Google doesn’t use domain authority as a ranking factor to decide how to display a website in SERPs, but it can give you an idea of how well a site performs against competitors. Sites with higher DAs may be better for getting quick results. You may also want to consider increasing the DA and other similar metrics on your own site. Good metrics from both parties can increase domain credibility for everyone.
How Much Should I Charge For a Guest Post?
How much you can charge for a guest post depends on factors such as:
- Content length
- Market price
- Metrics
- Niche markets
- Outreach efforts
- Writer credibility or experience
Working with a guest posting service can also influence what you charge per item. Because you pay a fee for these services, you may charge more for your content to have the host site’s price pay for that fee. Consider researching what other guest bloggers in your field or niche charge for their content to get the best idea of a price range for your posts.
12 Best Guest Posting Services of 2021
Here are 12 services you can use to find host sites and place your content:
1. CopyPress
Here at CopyPress, we can help you get your content out on different websites in front of new viewers. With our content syndication services, you can find homes for not just your guest posts, but other content too, like eBooks and infographics. We test and train our creatives before they handle your work to ensure you get the best quality and consistency with your projects.
Our campaign software also makes it simple for you to create, track, and provide feedback about your guest posts. Log in any time to view your campaign status, give access to other teammates, and provide feedback on your content. Plus, we’ll only share your content with publishers that you approve. Ready to get started? Fill out our online form so we can schedule a call and make a plan for your content promotion as soon as possible!
2. BibiBuzz
Image via BibiBuzz
The BibiBuzz tagline is “Natural Link Building by Humans, Not Automation.” True to that phrase, this company creates connections among individuals and small companies rather than large SEO agencies. To get started, you’ll meet with the company founder to choose your SEO strategy and campaign. Projects are flexible with content and can adapt to your guest post needs. With the project tracker, you can watch your posts’ progress.
3. Fat Joe
Image via Fat Joe
Fat Joe focuses on SEO and link-building services. The company works with marketing agencies and teams to provide additional services like local business citations, press release distributions, and blogger outreach. Similar to CopyPress, FatJoe offers a scalable solutions and customer support for your ongoing questions and needs.
4. Forward Linking
Image via Forward Linking
This company focuses on getting its clients featured on high-authority websites. This can lead to better brand exposure, more organic traffic, and better Google rankings. Some of its tactics include using personalized, relevant, and return-on-investment (ROI) targeted content creation. Forward Linking prides itself on using white hat SEO strategies. Like CopyPress, Forward Linking also tests and reviews bloggers to make sure your content only goes to the best sites.
5. Globex Outreach
Image via Globex Outreach
This company uses manual outreach to connect guest bloggers with high-quality, high-traffic sites from its database. Globex Outreach claims to have connections to over 30,000 blogs in different niches, which can give you a wide range to find a place to put your content.
6. Heroic Search
Image via Agency Spotter
Heroic Search focuses on manual outreach and building relationships with bloggers, editors, journalists, and SEO agencies. Most of their guest posting services rely on these already established connections to find the best quality host sites.
7. Higher Visibility
Image via Design Rush
Like we do at CopyPress, this company focuses on placing guest posts that grow your web traffic and increase leads and sales. It uses high DA sites to ensure that you engage with SEO-optimized content and quality links. Higher Visibility can also help create personalized SEO strategies for your audience that reflect your brand.
8. OutReach Frog
Image via LinkedIn by OutReach Frog
OutReach Frog looks to help businesses increase their organic traffic by generating quality backlinks in relevant niches. The company has been around for over 10 years and prides itself on using white hat strategies to grow traffic. The manual outreach can help find bloggers and site owners to share your content.
9. Outreach Pete
Image via Outreach Pete
This service is newer to the guest posting industry, but it offers competitive pricing with more established groups. Some of the best attributes of Outreach Pete include:
- Account managers as accessible points of contact and support
- Blogs that share guest post content on social media for additional exposure
- Guest posts published as native content
- High-quality volume of organic search traffic from Google
- Posts featured on a blog’s homepage, relevant sub-pages, and tag pages
- Use of exact anchor text as specified by the guest poster
10. OutreachMama
Image via OutreachMama
This company offers both link building and guest posting services. It accesses pre-made blogger connections with hosts who have gone through a process to determine if they have strong DA and DR metrics. Just like at CopyPress, you get to approve a list of blogs and sites for content syndication.
11. Page One Power
Image via Page One Power
This guest posting service focuses on getting high-quality and SEO-optimized content in front of the right target audience and onto search engines. It builds relationships with bloggers to get content on the first page of Google SERPs. Page One Power also pays attention to evergreen links and content that drives continuous traffic.
12. Rhino Rank
Image via Twitter by Rhino Rank
Rhino Rank claims to be a “360-degree link outreach agency.” The team focuses on getting your content in places relative to your niches, markets, and projects. The company works with agencies, freelancers, and businesses to maximize your options.
Guest posting can be a helpful tool for increasing your organic search results and SEO. Whether you handle the process yourself or use an available service, there are plenty of options to help you employ this strategy and increase your visibility on the web.
CopyPress writer
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